Earthquake, Disaster Preparedness Focus of New Wells Fargo Blog

Wells Fargo, which opened its doors in 1852, was one of the few financial institutions which helped rebuild the city after the Great Earthquake and fire which destroyed 490 city blocks in San Francisco.

"After the quake, we served customers for a few days out of a team member's home and our express delivery wagons delivered relief supplies and transported patients to safety from St. Mary's Hospital," said John Stumpf, President and Chief Operating Officer, who will contribute several posts to the blog. "The earthquake and fire, though they happened 100 years ago, still carry important lessons for all Wells Fargo communities across North America about the value of being ready for disasters."

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, there is a 62 percent probability of at least one magnitude 6.7 or greater earthquake striking the San Francisco Bay region before 2030. The "Guided by History" blog includes information on how to prepare survival kits and write disaster plans and is a forum for posting comments. The blog -- active through mid-May 2006 -- also features exclusive first hand accounts by Wells Fargo team members of the earthquake, including letters, photographs and video of historical events.

"We've been a leader in online banking for over ten years, so blogging is a natural progression for Wells Fargo in the way we communicate with our customers," said Sylvia Reynolds, Chief Marketing Officer. "'Guided by History' is our first corporate experiment with blogging and we're excited to be an active participant in this medium."

The "Guided by History" blog will feature daily coverage of the San Francisco Fire Department Historical Society's "1906 Great Earthquake & Fire Exposition," taking place on April 15-17, 2006. It also features content from the American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter, which has brought together organizations and leaders in the public and private sectors, including Wells Fargo, in its Prepare Bay Area campaign, to help guide Bay Area residents through the disaster preparation process.

[Editor's note: this is great to see and congratulations to Wells Fargo for putting it together. In keeping up with its tradition of being out in front in the application of technology, Wells Fargo also recently became the first major bank with its own RSS syndicated feed - feeding a daily update about this day in Wells Fargo history.]

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